New Comptroller’s report says nearly 60 percent of Tennessee counties have ‘monetarily significant’ school upgrade needs

A stock image from the state’s Office of Research and Education Accountability November 2024 legislative brief.

While the majority of K-12 facilities in Tennessee are in “good” or “excellent” condition, a new report from the Tennessee Comptroller’s Office of Research and Education Accountability says that nearly 60 percent of counties have a “monetarily significant school infrastructure need.” 

A pie chart from the Comptroller’s Office of Research and Accountability shows that more than half of Tennessee’s existing K-12 inventory is in good condition. 

According to a legislative brief from the Comptroller’s Office outlining Tennessee’s K-12 school infrastructure needs, the cost of statewide school repairs and upgrades over the next five years sits at about $9.8 billion. The report said that of the 1,687 school buildings reviewed by the Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations (TACIR), 38 percent are in “excellent” condition, while one percent of buildings are considered to be in “poor” condition, meaning repairs are “required to keep the structural integrity sound or to ensure that it meets building code.” Of the 18 schools noted in this category, 11 of those facilities are in the Metro Nashville Public Schools district, while three are in Athens City Schools in McMinn County. 

The report said the average district cost for renovations as of 2022 was over $42 million, while the median was nearly $5.5 million, with costs ranging from $6,000 for improvements in West Carroll Special School District to nearly $3.4 billion in schools in Davidson County. 

“Tennessee’s larger public-school districts drive the statewide average renovation cost up,” the report noted.

While the median infrastructure cost per student is $3,480, the report said the average infrastructure cost per student is $6,557, and ranges from $7.61 to $51,703 per student. In general, the report said, the rising costs of construction services and labor presents a major challenge for districts with limited resources.

According to analysts, the total need for new public schools and additions increased by $454 million between 2023 and 2024, with new projects reaching up to $70 million apiece. In addition, TACIR reports that the average cost of a completed new school in Tennessee was over $50 million in 2022, compared to just $15 million in 2012. 

“The increase in the cost associated with school renovations, new buildings, and other infrastructure needs persists despite being offset by $151 million in completed schools and $49 million in canceled school construction projects. Market conditions contribute to increasing costs for school construction,” analysts noted in the report. 

According to the Comptroller’s report, the bulk of capital spending on K-12 schools is paid from local revenues, such as bonds and notes issued by local governments and dedicated property taxes. It said that most school districts in Tennessee cannot borrow money themselves and rely on local funding bodies like county commissions and city councils to issue debt. 

However, the report added that state initiatives such as the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) have also acted as a primary source of state capital funding for K-12 infrastructure needs, and could help to address remaining needs moving forward. 

The Comptroller’s Office will soon present the report’s findings to the House and Senate Education and Finance Committee. For more information on individual districts’ capital project needs or to read the full report, visit comptroller.tn.gov.